Two Cockroach Janta Party leaders sent to five-day judicial custody over Jantar Mantar protest

Delhi Police have acted against leaders of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) over a protest at Jantar Mantar in the capital. A court has ordered CJP's Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka to be sent to five days of judicial custody. Both will be lodged in Tihar Jail. They are accused of violating restrictions imposed on the protest and breaking the conditions of their bond.

CJP workers have objected to the action. The party's lawyer claims that police gave the court wrong information.

According to information available, Das, Ranka and Ajinkya Shinde of the CJP had reached the Jantar Mantar area on Tuesday. They are alleged to have scaled a wall to enter the protest site. Police took all three into preventive detention at night. On Wednesday morning they were produced before the SEM court at Mandir Marg.

There, Das and Ranka were sent to five days of judicial custody and the process of sending them to Tihar began. Shinde is to be released after furnishing a bail bond, it has emerged. It has also been stated that he violated Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for the first time.

During the hearing, Delhi Police argued that the accused had disturbed public peace and violated the conditions set in the bond. Police said the accused had also appealed to other citizens to join the protest. Police claim that the two leaders had given a written assurance that they would not take part in any such activity for the next one year, but broke the conditions. Following this argument, the court sent both to five days of judicial custody.

Advocate Abhisht Hel, who appeared for all three CJP leaders, objected to the police argument. According to him, police said the accused could commit further offences, and they were sent to judicial custody on the basis of that possibility. The lawyer says the police claim that the accused called on citizens to join the protest is false. He also argues that the accused did not violate the bond conditions. He further alleged that a separate complaint relating to Connaught Place was misused in this case.

After the action, Shinde made serious allegations against the government. According to him, Das, Ranka and CJP volunteers had gone to Jantar Mantar carrying the Indian tricolour and also raised slogans of "Bharat Mata ki Jai". Shinde alleged that for this reason the Modi-Shah government sent the two to jail for five days. He cited the freedom struggle, when the British government jailed revolutionaries for hoisting the tricolour and raising "Bharat Mata ki Jai" slogans. Shinde criticised the way the present government functions as dictatorial in nature.